How Do I Search the USDA Database for Nutrition Information?

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has an online database of the nutritional value for thousands of food items. The database is relatively easy to use and it provides fast results for people who are interested in learning what kinds of properties the food has with regard to vitamins, minerals, fat, protein and water content. This information is useful for people who want to know exactly what they are eating, or for people developing recipes who want to include the exact nutritional content for their recipes.

Instructions

• 1

  Go to the USDA's National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference at www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/address. Look for the white box to enter the food that you want to learn about. For example, if you want to find out about the nutritional value of a tomato, enter the word "tomato." Click on the "submit" button.

• 2

  Scroll down on the screen until you see the kind of tomato that you want to evaluate. Click inside the clear circle next to the product for which you are searching, and click on "submit." A long table appears that gives the nutritional information for the specific food item you selected.

• 3

  Read the screen that comes up. If you are not used to using the metric system for weights and measures, use a conversion tool (see Resources section) to translate the numbers to ounces, pounds or volume.